Guides
Pool Chemical Inventory Spreadsheet for Solo Techs: What Columns Matter
A pool chemical inventory spreadsheet only works if its columns match how you buy and dose chemicals. Record each product, unit, and dose interval.
What to take away
- Six columns carry a solo routeproduct with EPA registration number, container size, quantity on hand, reorder point, cost per unit, cost per service stop.
- Count liquids weekly, tablets and shock monthly, then reset every line when the season turns.
- Build each reorder point from your worst week plus supplier lead time, never from an average.
- Reconcile the sheet against twelve months of invoices once a year, then rebuild cost per stop.
- Keep the file on a phone and one printed page in the truck.
The six columns that matter
Every column has to answer a question you will ask while standing at a pool. Start with the one most solo techs leave blank.
The product column carries the full label name and the EPA registration number printed on the jug. That number earns its space beyond ordering. Pool chemicals count as hazardous in the workplace, and the article on OSHA and EPA chemical storage shows how labels, safety data sheets and an inventory line up on one truck.
| Column | What it holds | Why it earns its space |
|---|---|---|
| Product and EPA registration number | Full label name plus the number printed on the jug | Ties the row to one formulation |
| Container size | Gallons for liquids, pounds for tablets and granular | Turns half a jug into a number |
| Quantity on hand | Current count in gallons or pounds | The field you update at the stop |
| Reorder point | On-hand level that triggers an order | Prevents a mid-route shortage |
| Cost per unit | Dollars per gallon or pound from the newest invoice | Prices a single dose |
| Cost per service stop | Total chemical spend divided by stops served | Feeds pricing and exposes drift |
[figure 1]
Spreadsheet Columns and Their Purpose
Column
- Product
- Name, strength, EPA reg. number
- Container size
- Gallons, pounds, or tablet count
- On hand
- Current count after last stop
- Reorder point
- Minimum count you will tolerate
- Cost per unit
- Invoice price divided by units
- Cost per stop
- Monthly chemical spend divided by stops
What goes in it
- Product
- Matches label and safety data sheet
- Container size
- Converts to doses per stop
- On hand
- Triggers reorder before running dry
- Reorder point
- Prevents mid-route supply run
- Cost per unit
- Feeds cost per service stop
- Cost per stop
- Number that prices your route
Why it matters
- Product
- Container size
- On hand
- Reorder point
- Cost per unit
- Cost per stop
A spreadsheet handles this on a phone with no new software. The fields follow the same logic as any inventory record: identify, count, value, reorder.
Example: one row and the reorder point math
One row and the reorder point math
| Product | Container size | On hand | Reorder point | Cost per unit | Cost per stop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sodium hypochlorite 12.5 percent, registration number from the label | 5-gallon carboy | 12 gallons | 22 gallons | $1.60 per gallon | $3.10 across all chemicals |
The figures are illustrative, not benchmarks. This row's reorder point was built in four steps.
Reorder point math
- Note the worst week of the year, say 22 gallons across 60 stops.
- Divide by six service daysabout 3.7 gallons a day.
- Multiply by a four-day supplier lead timeabout 15 gallons.
- Add two days of cover, roughly 7 gallons, to reach 22 gallons.
Chlorine alone then costs about $35 a week, or $0.59 across 60 stops. Acid, tablets, shock and salt push a typical residential route to roughly $3 to $6 per stop in chemicals. Compare your own number month over month.
Cost per service stop belongs in your pricing. Keep it beside your vehicle records, where the guide to IRS mileage and equipment deductions shows how those costs sit on the same schedule.
Counting cadence by interval
| Interval | What you count | What you do with the number |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly | Liquid chlorine, muriatic acid, salt | Write the amount poured while the jug is in your hand |
| Monthly | Trichlor tablets, granular shock, test reagents | Check each row against its reorder point |
| At each season change | Every liquid and granular product | Reset counts and raise reorder points for the two busiest months |
| Once a year | The whole sheet against twelve months of invoices | Rebuild cost per unit and cost per stop |
Weekly: count the liquids at the stop
Liquid chlorine loses strength with heat and time. Sodium hypochlorite at 12.5 percent can drift toward 10 percent in a hot truck bed within weeks, so a dollar-only record hides what you poured away.
- Write the gallons poured before you leave the stop.
- Count liquid chlorine, muriatic acid and salt.
- Flag any row that has reached its reorder point.
Acid use tracks evaporation and refill water more than dosing error on inland routes. The notes on desert pool chemistry and evaporation control break that split down by market.
Monthly and seasonal: tablets, shock and storage
Trichlor tablets and granular shock move slowly enough that a monthly count holds. Test reagents belong on the same pass, because a faded bottle returns false readings.
A season change is the moment to reset the whole sheet.
- Recount every liquid and granular product.
- Raise reorder points for the two busiest months.
- Update cost per unit from the current invoice, not last year's.
- Confirm storage is ventilated, separated and away from oxidizers.
Pool chemicals fall under the OSHA hazard communication requirements, which apply to a one-truck operation the same way they apply to a warehouse.
Yearly: reconcile against invoices, then price the stop
Reconcile the sheet against twelve months of invoices. The gap between bought and recorded is shrinkage: spillage, over-dosing, evaporation, and the jug left in the sun. Under five percent is normal on a solo route. Over fifteen percent points to a process problem, usually at the dosing stage.
Annual chemical spend divided by annual stops gives your cost per service stop. That figure belongs in pricing, and a current sheet also shows how the route is really performing, the check described in how pool service owners check service quality.
